Will awoke later than he usually did in the morning. That Locksley's messing with everything, even my sleep. He tore his way out of his primitive shelter and stood straight and tall with his arms above his head to stretch out his aching back. Outside, the make-shift camp was already bustling with the day's activities. Will stretched once more, long and good, before he headed over to get his meager breakfast.
"What do you mean, you don't know!"
The morning's breath-taking stillness was shattered by John's (Will refused to call him by the name coined by Locksley) booming shout.
Concerned, Will detoured over to where John and the Moor were having a heated discussion.
Azeem's heavy accent spilled forth with barely reined-in anger. "I tell you I don't know! I woke up this morning and he was gone!"
"Already packed up and fled, now did he?" Will's smooth, sarcastic voice startled both, and Azeem whirled to see who had intruded upon their conversation.
"No, Scarlett," John's eyes hardened, "but he did leave without telling anyone where he was going." He turned back to face the two newcomers, Azeem and Duncan. "And that's too dangerous. This forest is too vast that any one of us outlaws who knows this forest could easily be lost, and that doesn't bode well for Locksley. I wish to buggers I knew where he was headed."
Duncan in his feeble voice quietly chimed in, saying, "Master Robin did mention this morning in conversation about their being mass today in Nottingham. He seemed very interested."
Scarlett exaggeratedly showed his disapproval and rolled his eyes.
"The bloody fool."
Azeem eyed him interestedly, even as John began to spew. "Brillant. He's heading straight into the Sheriff's lair, and him just having killed two of the sheriff's men! The man's either got too much pluck for his own good, or he's off his rocker."
Azeem never dropped his stony gaze from Will, but now he started to talk in simple, soft tones, "You hold great anger towards the Robin of Locksley."
Will's dark eyes challenged the stranger before him. "Very keen observation there, Moor."
The dark man did not react to the insult at all. "I speak the truth then."
"Partly. I dislike Locksley, but no more so than any other disgusting noble sickens me. You'll find all nobles are of the same lot as Nottingham and Gisbourne are." Will ended the conversation, steering it cleanly from the truth, and spun on his heel back to the campfire.
Late that afternoon, the thundering hooves easily preceded the return of the noble, who sat crouched low on a white horse. A white horse…
Pure white. Rich bridle, classy saddle.
"You stole the Sheriff's horse." Locksley brushed past him and Scarlett trailed right on his heels, too angry to keep his distance.
"You've stirred up a bloody hornet's nest now."
"Are you afraid, John?" Robin retorted.
"Yeah, a little."
"Well, so is the sheriff, and today I gave him something he'll not forget."
"You fool! You've started a war!" Did the rich boy ever stop to think for one second between his games that there might be more people at risk than merely himself?
"We're already at war," he knelt beside Duncan, "And I say we strike back at the very man who takes our homes and hunts our children."
"We? You're planning to join us then, mate?"
"No, to lead you."
Scarlett started in shock.
Later that night, Will and a fellow outlaw, Giles Redwood, sat away from the fire to eat.
"To lead us? The man' not just a fool, he's addled in his brain," Will gestured with his hand. His companion nodded in agreement.
"Our fight isn't his," Will thought aloud as he surreptitiously watched Robin, "and his fight sure isn't ours."
"He'll never go through with it." Giles said.
"Well, I for one think he will," Wulf, overhearing, haughtily stated as he walked past.
"Bully for you," Will whispered under his breath. They both snickered at the boy's expense.
"Hey!"
"What are they doing here?"
"John!"
"What's happened!"
"Stephen!"
"Where is he!"
"What are they doing here!"
"Fanny!"
All the outlaws ran to swarm flooding into their hideout, rushing to greet their long-lost families.
Will ran to see why they were all there. He had no family, and that why he was surprised to see an old acquaintance within the crowd.
"Stephen!"
"Will, they've burned the village, all of it! Where is this Robin Hood?"
"He's there." The young man turned and pointed out where Locksley was sitting.
"Look, look what they've done!" Will's heart wrenched when he saw Stephen lift his son to show the mark that crossed his little boy's face. Will had only known Stephen slightly;Will had only been in the village a short time before he was outlawed. But he still remembered the striking, vibrant youth the child had been. And now he was branded forever because of Locksley's foolishness. Will stormed over to where Locksley sat on the fallen tree, resembling to Will a fat king on his undeserved throne.
"You brought this misery on us, Locksley."
"This is Nottingham, trying to divide us."
"We are divided, rich boy. I'm not as blind as that old man over there. You're still trying to be lord of the manor." Will heard the consenting murmurs, and at that moment he was distinctly aware of the crowd behind him. Now was his chance, to be rid of this pest once and for all. "I heard today that the sheriff now values your neck at five hundred goldpieces." Turning to the crowd, "I say we take him in!"
A collective yes ran through the crowd.
Robin tilted his head at him. "Will, do you think that the sheriff will give everything back after I'm gone?"
"They'll give us the reward and our pardons."
"Wrong. He'll stretch your necks one by one."
"Well, what will you have us do? Fight men on horsebacks with rocks and our bare hands?"
"If needs be," Robin stepped in close, forcing Will to gaze up at the taller man. "But there's one true weapon that escapes you, Will. Courage."
He swallowed hard, eyes flashing a rage so potent the air between Robin and Will almost crackled in its intensity. The outlaw unsheathed his dagger and quickly took aim at Robin's retreating back.
"Look out!"
The pain, raw and searing, ripped through him as the arrow pierced his palm. Will hunched down, cradling the hand embedded with Robin's arrow. Still in shock, his eyes flew to the perpetrator. Locksley met his gaze squarely, no hint of remorse in his body. Will felt the hundreds of eyes boring into him, and he swiftly tore off, still hunched over his injury.
He ran for the river, fiercely blinking back the instinctive tears that rushed to his eyes as the arrow brushed the overhanging branches in his path. None too soon, the sparkling water came into view around the bend. Will rushed to the edge of the bank and plunged his hand in. The soothing water eased the pain and gently washed away the blood. He pulled his hand out and awkwardly reached for the arrowhead. Will closed his eyes and snapped the tip off the arrow. The snap reverberated throughout the arrow, and his hand screamed its unhappiness. He wished desperately to put it back in the water, but Will knew if he did, he would never bring it back up. Closing his eyes once again, he gritted his teeth, and pulled.
"Aww!" Will yelped. The blood spurted afresh, and Will cringed in the agony that sliced through his palm. Back in the water he thrust it. He kept it under for several minutes, until the pain was at a somewhat more tolerable level. Tearing off a piece of his shirt, he awkwardly tied it around the open wound.
His hand was bandaged, but Will had no intention of returning to camp just yet. He couldn't understand what had just happened. Had he really almost knifed Locksley…in the back?
Throughout his life, Will had been very opinionated and headstrong. He had despised each and every form of cowardice and beggary he had ever seen. Even his mother, at times when she would allow herself to remember the past without bitterness, had thought that even though Will Scarlett had been ousted from the Locksley life, he had sure held onto the Locksley pride. And a part of that pride of his had been knowing that he was never and would never be a coward.
But now he couldn't say that anymore. He had just tried to murder someone in the back. He had never done something so underhanded. Oh, sure, he had had his fair share of fights, but they had always been "clean" and "fair." He had never known he was capable of such ugliness. And it frightened him.
But Locksley had just made him so mad!
The sun was low in the sky when Will Scarlett returned to the camp. By then, it was bustling with activity; everyone was geared up and excited after Robin's invigorating speech. The children were busy gathering all the sticks they could find, the men were starting to formulate plans on building a village in the trees, and the womenfolk were hustling about to prepare the meal. Robin, John, and Azeem were huddled together, clearly making the overall plans for this extravaganza.
Scarlett stopped at the edge, unsure of where he should go or what he should do. He knew everyone would be uncomfortable with what had happened, and, judging by the activity and energy he was seeing, he knew he had lost another battle for the minds of the outlaws. Locksley had beaten him again.
He had two choices, really. Step gracefully back into this society as best he could, or simply turn around and sulk. Neither idea particularly appealed to him, and the first choice was even more limited by his hand. He couldn't help out very much, at least for a while, and that would definitely not help him increase his standing.
So he just stood there, at a complete loss for what to do.
That was when Azeem glanced his way, still in the midst of the lively discussion between Robin and John. The painted man reached under his outer robe and grasped a pouch that was tied around his belt.
Will was watching the activities on the other side of camp, and so he was startled when Azeem spoke right next to him.
"Here. This will help you with the pain." The Moor held out the pouch. Only on instinct did Will reach out and take it. Will gingerly opened the pouch with his wounded hand. Inside was an herb, grounded up into a soothing salve. Will knew without being told what a valuable commodity it was. He tried to form the words to show his gratitude, but glancing up, he saw Azeem had already headed back to his previous location with Robin and John.
"What did you just do?" Robin demanded when Azeem returned. He had watched the goings-on in the corner of his eye and was not pleased with what he saw.
"I gave the man a salve for his wound," he stated simply.
Robin sputtered for a second. "You pledged to protect me, then you leave me to fend for myself against six of the Sheriff's men, I was alone against John, and now you are helping the man who almost killed me?"
"You insulted him, and he reacted. I do not think he truly meant to kill you, just to harm a little" Azeem answered.
"That makes me feel so much better, Azeem, thank you."
"He is not your enemy, unless you make him so." Azeem stated earnestly. True, Will had insulted him days before, but most of the camp had been wary of him, still was wary of him. The man just seemed angry and hurt, not an evil-minded killer. This made Azeem more sympathetic to the man who had indeed tried to kill Locksley than he otherwise would have normally been.
Robin didn't have a reply to this, and silently turned away, back to his work. They talked no more about it, but Robin did watch in increasing curiosity as Scarlett subtly joined his friend Stephen as he started building a temporary shelter for his family. Scarlett was limited by his hand greatly, and Robin knew he would have problems for a while, if not forever. Those wounds just didn't heal well.
Robin's interest was piqued by Azeem's words. Scarlett had been attacking him since the moment Robin had set foot in the forest. How could he not be his enemy? But, nevertheless, Robin had committed himself to being the leader of this band of outlaws. And as a leader, Robin knew he had to set the example for his men and take the high road. He would not make Scarlett his enemy; in fact he would try to befriend the hostile and peculiar young man. He would start tomorrow.
There's chapter two, and thank you so much for all of those who reviewed!
Shadow929--Thanks for being my first reviewer. Hopefully you will like this chapter and review again!
Skrblr-- That's not a sin. I had never seen Prince of Thieves until last year myself. I have always been partial to the Errol Flynn version myself, since that was the first one I've ever seen. But Prince of Thieves has a good story with Will Scarlett, and needless to say, I like him. Thank you for the comments on my writing, I need to be critiqued, and I thank you for taking the time to help me out like that.
Mazo-Dono--Thank you very much for your kind words. I hope you will enjoy this chapter.
Arica, Princess of Rivendale—Your wish is my command.
Thank you everybody for reading, please review, and have a great day!
Oh, by the way, in case anyone's wondering, there won't be too much dialogue taken straight from the movie now. I just had to get that out of the way because this is where Scarlett first makes a big appearance in the movie and it's apretty important part!